October 5th, 2012 - Brainless Bastards

Hello there my pretties... the Meista here with another pairing for you! After such a great interview with Dave Cole from Epic Brewing Company, I thought it most fitting to pair one of Epic's amazing brews! So tonight I am pairing the Brainless Belgian-Style Golden Ale (from the Elevated Series) and Motorhead's 1993 album "Bastards." I'm dedicating this pairing to the participants of Wednesday's Presidential Debate... wink, wink! Okay... just kidding! Really I'm dedicating this to Mallika Filtz (Epic's Communications Director) and the rest of the great management, brewers, and support staff at Epic Brewing!!

Now some may find it odd that I am pairing straight-ahead, foot-stomping metal with a Belgian-style ale, but here's my reasoning: BIG and INTENSE FLAVOR! And what's more metal than big and intense?! The Brainless Belgian-Style Golden Ale is a wonderful, complex and well-balanced ale.  It has a very refreshing, yet very rich and forward intensity. It is initially sharp ("On Your Feet Or On Your Knees" and "Burner"), tart, and slightly sweet ("Bad Woman") with a "pink bubble-gum" finish. There's a real nice bitterness ("Liar") as well from the Premiant, Tettnang and Saaz hops that really come out in the mid-range and finish as well. The Brainless is brewed with Premium Weyermann Pilsner, Ultra Premium Maris Otter as base malts and finished off with Candy Sugar, Briess Carapils Malt, Flaked Oats, and subtle amount of Briess White Wheat Malt. Those Premiant, Tettnang and Saaz hops give the Brainless a really nice spiciness ("I Am The Sword"), which is well-balanced ("We Bring The Shake") with the sweetness from the malts and sugars. There are also some nice clove, nutmeg, and ester notes (apple cider along with the traditional banana of a good Belgian). There's a slight booziness ("Born To Raise Hell" or "Death Or Glory") in there as well... but nothing overpowering... again, well-balanced. As Epic's own description states, the Brainless is "deceivingly drinkable, some liken these ales to the Devil sneaking up on you." That comes from the 8.7% ABV hiding in that refreshing flavor, which is very fitting for the songs "I Am The Man" "Lost In The Ozone," and the finale, "Devils." You've got to pace yourself with the Brainless, which isn't necessarily easy when jamming to the speed of Motorhead!  I think Lemmy might be sneaking up on me!  :)

Do yourself a big favor and grab a bottle of the Brainless Belgian-Style Golden Ale and make sure you check out Epic Brewing and all their great beers at www.epicbrewing.com... And pick up Motorhead's "Bastards" from my buddy Kevin at the Heavy Metal Shop at www.heavymetalshop.com!